NJ Lawmakers Scramble to
Ensure Public Access to Beaches, Waterfronts

Without emergency measures being taken,
state could lose federal funding for shore
protection projects

Acting on an emergency basis,
legislators yesterday moved to restore
the authority of the state Department of
Environmental Protection to require
public access to beaches and waterfront
areas.

Without the bill (S-3321), federal
funding for shore protection projects
along the coast would be jeopardized, as
well the ability of the state to oversee
important environmental programs,
according to proponents of the measure.

The bill is a rare bipartisan
response of the legislative and
executive branches to a state appeals
court decision handed down just three
days before Christmas that invalidated
the DEP’s authority to require beach
access through its coastal protection
and waterfront development permits.

Approved by both the Senate
Environment and Energy and the Assembly
Appropriations committees, the
legislation is expected to win final
passage in votes by the Senate and
Assembly on Monday -- the last day of
current legislative term.

“It’s appropriate to act
expeditiously,’’ said Sen. Bob Smith
(D-Middlesex), the chairman of the
Senate committee and a sponsor of the
bill, who called the special meeting of
the panel after receiving a call
Wednesday requesting a quick response
from DEP Commissioner Bob Martin. “Do we
want chaos or do we want order?’’

Martin said the bill will simply
restore the practice of having the
agency provide beach access as it was
before the court decision, which he
argued “seriously and immediately
jeopardized the ability of every New
Jerseyan to access waterfront areas.’’

The court decision affects 1,300
access points in 120 towns and cities
along the state’s coastline, according
to Martin. Even before the court’s
ruling, beach access has been a
contentious issue, including DEP taking
legal action against property owners to
build dunes along beaches to prevent
damage from storms like Hurricane Sandy.

If enacted, the bill would restore
rules put in place by the DEP in 2012
governing beach access -- regulations
many conservation groups opposed,
including one that brought the challenge
to the appeals court. Without the
Legislature acting, Martin said the
state would appeal the court’s decision.

But Smith refused to entertain any
amendments, from environmentalists who
criticize the regulations for cutting
back access to waterfront areas and from
business interests who wanted changes to
reflect areas important to homeland
security.

Instead, Smith said he would take up
the issue in the upcoming legislative
term, after convening a special panel to
come up with recommendations for changes
to lawmakers.

“The DEP is the right agency to
regulate beach access and many of the
programs important to New Jersey
residents,’’ Smith said.

But Jeff Tittel, director of the New
Jersey Sierra Club, called the bill only
a first step in correcting defects from
the court case, but ‘’we still have a
lot of work ahead of us.’’